This 3 day update confuses me so much, aha. Feel lucky that I actually remembered it was today :-) Anyway, here you go!

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"Are you done yet, Veronica?" Alyssa snapped, as her make-up artist brushed yet another coat of blush onto her cheeks, smudging it in with her forefinger.

She had been sat in the chair in the grand dining hall for close to an hour now, and she was getting bored - not to mention the fact that she was now ridiculously uncomfortable following sitting in the same position for all this time.

The dining hall had been transformed into something resembling a salon prior to the dance. Both Veronica’s and Alyssa’s personal hair stylist’s equipment were sprawled out on the dining table, covering almost the entire tabletop. Two dresses were hanging up inside protective covers on the walls, which would later go under Alyssa’s scrutiny to determine which one she would wear.

One of them was the purple dress she found in the boutique a few months back, the second was a custom-made designer dress she had had imported from Paris last week. It was a limited edition, costing over ten thousand dollars which her father had paid for (thankfully, right before he had found out about what happened at school).

"Almost," Veronica answered her, placing down the brush and pausing before picking up the mascara wand again.

"You’re not making me look overdone, are you?" Alyssa questioned. "I’m paying you enough, so you better make it look decent."

"Yes, Miss Taylor."

Just as she began to swipe the mascara wand over Alyssa’s long lashes, the noise of the doorbell rung through the house. Alyssa swiped Veronica’s hand away quickly and jumped from her seat, her freshly-curled blonde locks bouncing on her shoulders.

"That’ll be Kayla," she called.

She entered the entrance hallway and threw open the door, greeting Kayla as her friend stepped inside her house. When she had broken apart from their quick hug, she stepped back to scrutinize her friend’s dress.

"Not bad..." she said, nodding appreciatively at the short pink figure-hugging dress that Kayla was wearing. It was a good decision – flattering, pretty and yet at the same time not so extravagant that it would outshine Alyssa herself. That was the most important factor.

The dress was a deep pink, separated into two parts by a dark rose belt. The bodice was completely covered in glitter, which glinted each time it caught the light of the chandelier above their heads, with a dainty sweetheart neckline. The skirt graduated into a lighter shade of pink and finished above the knee.

Overall it was good, but not even close in comparison to Alyssa’s dresses.

"Alyssa? I need to finish your make-up."

Rolling her eyes, Alyssa called back in response. "Okay, Veronica." As she walked across the hall, she muttered to Kayla, "I don’t even know why I hire that woman."

As it turned out, Alyssa’s make-up was almost finished and only took around five minutes to complete. When Veronica had finished, she snatched a mirror from the table, peering at her reflection closely. Unexpectedly, Veronica had done a good job and Alyssa found herself satisfied with the end result.

"Kayla!" Alyssa snapped, causing her friend to spin round quickly. "Get over here and let Veronica touch you up. You’re looking a bit pasty."

Kayla nodded, trotting over to the seat which Alyssa had just vacated. Immediately, the make-up artist picked up a brush and began sweeping it lightly over her face, gradually adding a darker tint.

Whilst she was doing this, Alyssa made her way over to the far end of the dining hall, towards the window, where the two dresses were hanging in plain sight. She reached upwards, not even needing to stand on her tip toes due to her naturally tall stature, and pulled the protective covers off the dresses, letting them glide to the polished marble floor with ease.

"Anya, which dress do you think?"

Alyssa peered over her shoulder, looking expectantly at her personal stylist, who was standing beside the dining table. Anya was a straight-talking, powerful woman whom Alyssa often argued with, but there was no denying that she was one of the best stylists money could buy. Originally, she had considered firing Anya when they had had their first disagreement, but after experiencing her knowledge of fashion, she thought better of it.

Anya folded her arms, squinting as she inspected both of them, as if this would help her to make a better judgement. Then, after a mere few seconds of internal debate, she spoke.

"The white one."

Alyssa turned back to the dresses, touching the fabric of the second dress. "Don’t you think it’ll wash me out?"

"Are you disagreeing with me?" Anya challenged, raising her eyebrows. "If you didn’t want my opinion, why did you ask for it?"

"I’m allowed to ask, aren’t I?" Alyssa scowled. "I was just saying. I don’t know about the colour."

"Well, you know which one I’ve chosen. If you want to go for the frumpy one, then so be it." She clicked her fingers dismissively, just as her cell phone began to ring. She picked it up, pressing it to her ear quickly before exiting the room.

"Veronica, what do you think?"

The make-up artist looked up from applying powder to Kayla’s face. "They are both beautiful, Miss Taylor."

"I know that," Alyssa said, sighing irritably. "I wanted an answer." She paused, looking up at the two dresses again. "Right, that’s it. I’m choosing the purple one. At least I can piss Anya off if I wear that one."

***

Ethan stared at his reflection in Carter’s mirror for the hundredth time, taking the opportunity to let a grin spread across his face.

"Seriously, dude, what are you so happy about?" Carter said, frowning at his unusually positive mood. "It’s a dance, Ethan. You know, something girls get excited about? For us it’s just standing in the gym in an uncomfortable tux and watching them prance around in their expensive dresses."

"It’s not always like that," Ethan protested. "Plus, I have a little something planned."

"Like what?"

"You’ll see," he responded simply, tapping his nose.

"If it’s a stink bomb or something, then we are way too old for that," Carter said, his speech followed by a thoughtful pause. "But it’d still be pretty funny."

"It’s not a stink bomb," Ethan assured him, turning away from the mirror and adjusting the jacket of his tuxedo. "Or any other practical joke." Although I’m sure it will cause just as much of a stir, he thought to himself, the voice in his head so clear he wondered for a second if he had accidentally said it out loud.

"Who are you taking again?" Carter queried, his brows furrowing.

"You know full well I’m not taking anyone," Ethan stated, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "I’ve told you that a thousand times. And you’ve told me to ask someone a thousand times. And guess how many times I’ve said no?"

"Well, you should’ve asked someone," Carter muttered. "Now you’ve got to show up alone. And it’s not as if any girl was going to turn you down, was it?"

"I don’t want to go with any of those girls."

"Because you’re still hung up on that nerd?"

"I’ve told you. I’m not ‘hung up’ on her," he said, even though the exact opposite was true. "And even if I was, she’s not a nerd."

"Whatever you say, dude, but she’s still on scholarship."

Ethan exhaled, resisting the urge to argue back. Carter was still completely unaware of Ethan’s secret, and therefore took no shame in slating the scholarship students whenever possible. It was getting increasingly harder not to defend them, but there was no way he could do so without arousing suspicion.

"Does my tie look okay?" Carter asked, interrupting Ethan’s train of thought.

"It’s a bit wonky. Here, let me fix it."

He stepped over towards him, reaching for the grey-coloured tie that lay underneath his jacket and straightening it until it looked presentable. When he had finished and stepped back to admire his handiwork, Carter gave him an appreciative nod.

"Thanks. I just hope it’s the right colour. Courtney will kill me if it doesn’t match her dress exactly."

"Have you seen what she’s wearing?"

Carter shook his head loosely. "She won’t let me. Says it’s got to be a ‘surprise’ or something, but I don’t have a clue why. She’s been driving me up the wall lately."

"Oh."

Ethan took one last look at himself in the mirror, checking the appearance of his hair and outfit, before glancing at the alarm clock that lay on Carter’s desk. Time until the dance started was quickly diminishing and he wanted to make sure he got there on time so he could have a word with someone about his plan. The thought of it all playing out perfectly caused excitement to swell up inside of him, but there was always the gnawing possibility that things would go the other way. Still, he thought to himself. It has to be worth a try.

"We better make a move," he said, nodding towards the clock and then looking at Carter. "What time did you say you were picking up Courtney?"

Carter shrugged, as if to indicate that he didn’t particularly care. "No clue. She’ll just have to be ready when I do."

"Oh, right," Ethan responded. "Let’s go, then. You go pick her up, and I’ll meet you there."

***

"Chelsie! I think this dress has shrunk from when I tried it on in the shop!"

Olivia’s wailing voice came from the other side of the bathroom door, and as it reached Chelsie’s range of hearing, she let out a small sigh.

"I’m sure it hasn’t," she reassured her. "Come on out and let me see."

Reluctantly, Olivia turned the handle on the bathroom door and stepped out into Chelsie’s bedroom, feeling uncomfortably exposed as she did so. The dress she had chosen seemed a lot shorter at the present, and she was fully conscious of the fact that leaning over too much may reveal her backside.

"It looks great!"

"Are you sure?" Olivia asked, although confidence had begun to return to her voice. Cautiously, she stepped over to the mirror and peered into it, slightly nervous that the dress would look utterly hideous and unflattering when she was wearing it. However, thankfully, this wasn’t the case, and much to her surprise, she actually looked... good in it.

The dress she had chosen was from a small boutique she had never visited or even noticed before, and it was only by chance that they had gone inside. It was a pleasant ivory colour, cinched in at the waist and flowing downwards into a dainty floating skirt before finishing above the knee. A pink bow was placed on the waist, giving the dress a more girly feel. Its sweetheart neckline was flattering and the light colour complimented her skin tone well.

Overall, it was perfect, and it was a wonder that they had even managed to find something like it.

"You look amazing! Ethan won’t be able to resist you," she added with a wink.

Olivia shot her a warning look, but didn’t say anything more. She had been trying to forget about the fact that Ethan would be at this dance too. She didn’t know if he had a date... wait, that was a stupid question, wasn’t it? Of course he had a date. There was no way that Ethan Shaw would show up for the formal dance alone...

Would he?

No, of course he wouldn’t. It was embarrassing enough for her, let alone one of the most popular guys in school. He could have any girl he wanted... so who had he asked? The thought of someone else on Ethan’s arm made her heart drop slightly, but she tried to ignore the feeling. There was a reason she was avoiding him, and she had to just remember that reason.

Chelsie put the curlers back down on her dressing table and got up from her chair. "Now let’s try my dress on for size." She walked over to the bed, bending down and snatching up the dress which lay inside a protective cover. With it gripped firmly in her hand, she bounded excitedly over to the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.

A few minutes later she emerged, grinning wildly as she made eye contact with her best friend.

"Wow!" Olivia exclaimed, unable to think of any other adjectives as she stared at Chelsie’s dress. "It looks even better than I remembered."

It was the same length as Olivia’s, but the colour was very different. Instead of creamy ivory, it was a cross between a deep green and black – the dark emerald colour was blended by an overlying layer of black netting that complimented it perfectly. The bottom of the bodice was decorated with a collection of deep green jewels, and the fabric, which contained hints of gold, glinted attractively in the light.

"Thanks!" Chelsie beamed back at her, spinning round so the skirt of the dress twirled with her. "Fred better be wearing a tux. I don’t trust him not to turn up in some Star Wars costume or something instead."

Olivia couldn’t help but laugh. "That’d be pretty funny though."

"That may be," Chelsie replied with a smile. "But it wouldn’t look good in the photos."

"They’ve got a photographer?" Olivia asked suddenly, her voice hinting at surprise. She didn’t know why she was so taken aback by this - most school dances had them to commemorate the occasion, so why would Serenity Falls be any exception? No doubt they would have one of the best photographers money could buy, who would probably touch up the photos afterwards to make sure they were no less than perfection.

"Yeah... why wouldn’t they?"

"Oh... no reason."

Olivia shook her head, but she couldn’t help but feel an almost sinking feeling washing over her. It was enough that she had to show up to the dance alone already, but she didn’t want any photographs constantly reminding her of her lack of a date. Before she was even aware of it, her mind had flicked back onto Ethan, and she wondered who he would be standing in front of the photographer’s backdrop with, his arm around, his signature smile on his face as he looked into the camera lens...

"You know, Fred and I will have one done with you, if that’s what you’re worried about," Chelsie said reassuringly.

"Thanks," Olivia answered her, forcing a small smile onto her face. "But I don’t think I’ll get one."

"Oh. Right," Chelsie nodded, understanding from Olivia’s face that it would be better not to pry. She turned back to the mirror again, running her hands down the skirt of her dress, smoothing it with her fingers. Even though the material was not soft, she loved the feel of it against her skin, and a part of her wished that she could keep it on forever, despite how unhygienic that would be.

"You really do look great," Olivia said truthfully, snapping out of her daydream and going back to admiring Chelsie’s dress.

"You too," she answered her, grinning back at her best friend. With a tilt of her head, she took a look at the clock that was lying on her bedside cabinet, checking how much time they had - which turned out to be not much at all. "Fred’s going to be here in about five minutes. We should probably go wait downstairs."

"Okay."

Chelsie made for the door, Olivia following closely behind her. As she passed the mirror, Olivia took the opportunity to glance at herself one last time, forcing a wide grin onto her face as she did so. Then, after a split second, she had grabbed her clutch bag and was already in Chelsie’s hallway, making her way down the stairs. It was difficult to do so in her new (small) heels - which were far from Alyssa’s height, but she managed okay.

Fred arrived about five or ten minutes later, standing at the door with a wide smile on his face as Chelsie opened it and greeted him. Thankfully, there was no sign of a Star Wars costume and he had decided upon a relatively normal tuxedo that made him look at least a couple of inches taller than his normal height.

"Wow," he said, as he stepped inside the hallway. "Chelsie, you look amazing."

"Thanks," she answered him, her cheeks flushing. "You don’t look so bad yourself."

Fred rolled his eyes jokingly, before turning his attention to Olivia. His eyes scanned her appearance and then returned to her face as he smiled. "And you too, Olivia. That dress suits you so well."

"Not too short?" Olivia questioned.

"Nope, it looks fine," he responded. "We better get going, then. Are you guys ready?"

The two girls nodded at him, and he smiled back at them. He turned on his heel and made for the door, stepping out into the cool spring evening. It was still fairly light, and the sun was low in the sky, casting a soft glow on the world below it.

As they climbed into Fred’s older brother’s prized possession – his new Toyota car in a sleek shade of black – an unusual feeling washed over Olivia. The dance was only a few minutes away, and although it was one of the most anticipated school events of the year, the uneasiness was still welling inside her. Would she be the only one to turn up alone? Sure, she was with Fred and Chelsie, but everyone knew they were now dating and it would be obvious that she was a spare part.

And what would she do when she saw Ethan? More specifically, what would she do when she saw him with his arm around another girl? There was no way that he would dare to show up alone. The gossip would be overpowering; he just wouldn’t risk it.

The car pulled away from Chelsie’s driveway and started down the road, and each centimetre it travelled only brought them closer to the dance.

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I'm so excited to upload the next couple of chapters! There's so much drama, aha :) And I can't wait for the sappy ending :P I can't think of anything else to say, so that concludes this very uninteresting author's note. I love you all. And remember to vote, if you're excited for the sappy cliché romance that's coming up ;)